The Vikings added much-needed offensive line help on Friday night, drafting Boise State tackle Ezra Cleveland with the 26th pick in the second round.
It will be interesting to see how Cleveland fits on the offensive line. Will he bump Riley Reiff to guard? Could Brian O’Neill play left tackle and Cleveland play right?
We’ll see.
But there will be some familiarity for Cleveland in Minnesota. He’ll be reunited with former Boise State teammate Alexander Mattison. Cleveland and Mattison played in Boise State together in 2018. Upon being drafted, Cleveland immediately texted the running back.
#Vikings new tackle Ezra Cleveland: "I'm really thankful for this opportunity. … Alex (Mattison) was the first person I texted when I got the call.''
— Chris Tomasson (@christomasson) April 25, 2020
There’s a good chance Vikings’ scouts got a head start on scouting Cleveland last season when they were scouting Mattison last year.
By drafting Cleveland, the Vikings silenced most rumors that they were interested in trading for Trent Williams. While Williams is better, the Vikings look better off considering they won’t have to trade Anthony Harris or Reiff, and can keep all of their picks.
Although, it is pretty unlikely the team uses all 13(!) of its picks on Saturday.